1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to measuring physical dimensions on home and industrial construction projects, and more specifically, to a measuring system comprising a Bluetooth-enabled measuring tape in communication with a remote computing device running a software application for making, recording, transmitting, calculating and remotely prompting and guiding further measurements taken by a user with the bluetooth-enabled measuring tape, thereby making project measurements more convenient and error-free.
2. Description of the Background
Conventional tape measures comprise a coiled cloth or metal strip with linear-measurement markings. The flexibility allows for a measure of significant length to be easily carried in one's pocket or tool box, and it also permits measurement around curves or corners. However, a substantial amount of time is consumed during the measurement process using tape measures, and the process is inherently prone to memory lapses and transcription errors. The capture of each measurement taken by the user using the conventional tape measure requires the user to put the tape measure down and walk away from, or at least to take his or her eyes off of the element being measured, to write the measurement on a pad of paper or the like. Unfortunately, in the hectic and noisy environment of a typical construction site, at which conventional tape measures axe most commonly used, scraps or sheets of paper on which measurements are often recorded may be lost, soiled by dirt or liquids on the site, or blown away (i.e., off of unfinished floors of multi-story buildings). Moreover, in order to associate the measurements taken with a conventional tape measure to some meaningful element or dimension on the construction site or project, the user must also record the aspect that the measurement is associated with, which adds additional time to the measurement. And, on a construction, site or even in a user's home, when measurements are taken as part of a home improvement project, a large number of measurements may need to be taken such that the user must be ever more detailed in his or her description of the associated structural element in order to be able to properly recall which recorded measurement goes with which actual dimension (i.e., south-facing wall, east-facing wall, height including molding or height without molding, etc.). To prevent the loss of conventionally-recorded measurements and to save time, some users of conventional tape measures bypass this step of recording by trying to memorize the measurements they take, which also invites significant human error even when a user is well organized. This especially comes into play when a user wishes to measure a space, fixture, piece of furniture, etc. hours or days before the element is installed, such as when a user measures ingress/egress dimensions of his or her home or dimensions of a room prior to traveling to a store to purchase a piece of furniture for that room. A user may also be required to memorize or otherwise record the physical elements for which he or she needs to collect dimensions, and therefore may waste time by measuring incorrect or additional elements.
These drawbacks associated with a conventional tape measure are especially true in an intense environment such as a busy construction site or shop floor, where the user may become distracted by noise, other workers, or the need to move out of the way of a piece of equipment during a measuring project and lose track of his or her place. Additional drawbacks of using a conventional tape measure are specifically associated with home improvement projects or other detail-oriented construction or renovation projects. In addition to risking a failure to properly record or associate taken measurements with a specific aspect of a room, the typical do-it-yourselfer either measures wrongly, makes incorrect calculations based on taken measurements, or altogether foregoes measuring due to the time and complexity that the conventional tape measure, calculator, pen and paper method adds to even a simple home improvement project. The result is often an off-centered or otherwise improperly placed fixture and/or permanent holes or other damage to the structure of the home that cannot be easily moved or repaired.
Prior art solutions to the above-stated problems have addressed some, but not all, of these drawbacks. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 8,356,419 to Lord discloses a digital measuring device that takes measurements using a thin wire with a series of removable heads. The set of interchangeable heads and digital functionality of the Lord device allows the user to retain flexibility to measure a variety of structural elements but also adds time to the measuring process as the user must select and install one of the available heads for each application of the device. In some embodiments, the Lord system transmits taken measurements to a remote device, but does not automatically associate any taken measurement to a specific structural element.
Other techniques envisioned by the prior art for associating measurements taken by a digital measuring device with the actual element being measured include user voice recording (as in United States Patent Application No. 20090307920 to Schrage) or capturing user handwriting on an erasable writing tablet (as in U.S. Pat. No. 7,992,317 to Cannata). Like in the case of the Lord device, the user is required to take additional, time consuming and error-prone steps to re-associate the recorded measurements with the measured elements on a floor plan or the like.
Thus, there is a long-standing and yet unmet need in the prior art to facilitate the recording, retention and proper association of measurement information so that such information can be accurately accessed in the future. There is also a long-standing and yet unmet need in the prior art for a mobile or desktop application that can anticipate the measurements needed and guide the user through the process of taking the proper measurements based on a stated project or objective without the user needing to step away from the element being measured or to take his or her hands away from the measuring device.